We did Eurovision and ended up at the centre of ‘ridiculous’ satanic allegations-Danni Scott-Entertainment – Metro

Metal icons Lordi are bored of ‘satanic’ accusations (Picture: Sean Gallup/Getty Images)

Despite the success of bands like Kiss, Slipknot, and Metallica, metal music remains a misunderstood genre – as icons Lordi know only too well.

Cries of ‘satanic worship’ emerge every time a heavy rock group begins to push into the mainstream, even at Eurovision.

Mr Lordi, the group’s frontman, told Metro.co.uk how priests in Greece were up in arms over the Finnish group and their memorable monster masks in 2006.

‘When we went to Eurovision 18 years ago, the local priests were furious because they were absolutely sure that we were satanic,’ shared Mr Lordi.

Not only did they perform, Lordi secured the first and only win for their home country of Finland with Hard Rock Hallelujah.

‘[They were convinced] we are Satan worshippers,’ laughed the frontman. ‘We have nothing, not a single thing, to do with that.’

The group faced ‘satanic’ accusations when they were announced for Eurovision (Picture: AP)

Frontman Mr Lordi declared ‘stupidity knows no bounds’ (Picture: Valtteri Hirvonen)

Mr Lordi added that during his winning moment, he was suffering from a high fever and it was ‘probably the worst three-minute performance that I have ever done vocally.’

The song charted globally, making its way to number one on the UK rock charts and peaking at 25 of the regular top 40.

At the time, a group of protestors in Finland appealed to the organisers and asked for them to ‘cancel the procedure and choose another song’.

The Hellenes, according to Kerrang, stated: ‘This evil and satanic Finnish band is not welcome in Greece.’

‘Stupidity knows no bounds,’ sighed the Eurovision icon as he lamented the misconceptions around metal.

Even recently at the Paris 2024 Olympics, there was an outcry when French metal group Gojira took to the stage at the opening ceremony.

Reflecting on the recent discussions around Gojira, he added: ‘People just assumed that they are because it’s not Britney Spears. If you put it alongside Lady Gaga, yeah it’s different.

‘It’s different but it doesn’t mean that it’s satanic. [Just because] it has power and the theme is darker, it doesn’t mean that it’s automatically satanic.’

After 20 years of this backlash, Lordi — currently consisting of Mr Lordi, Hella, Mana, Hiisi and Kone — is fed up.

In reality, strip away the (incredible) monster prosthetics and the music is more in line with glam metal bands like Kiss or Twisted Sister than a satanic group.

Mr Lordi shared: ‘I mean, there are Satanic bands out there but in the end, so what if there is a band that is openly satanic? We’re not living in the Middle Ages.

Metal still struggles to find a place in the mainstream (Picture: ARIS MESSINIS/AFP via Getty Images)

Mr Lordi has always loved monsters and prosthetic makeup (Picture: Valtteri Hirvonen)

‘It shouldn’t be a crime. Maybe, people should use Google and go check out what actually is their message — are they satanic, did they say it themselves, or did you just make the assumption that they are?’

However, he does admit that often metal uses satanic imagery as part of the genre’s ‘tradition’, citing Iron Maiden as a popular group who do this.

While metal enjoys more mainstream success in Finland than in the UK, success at Eurovision boosted Lordi into one of the most recognisable bands to come out of the show, thanks to their dramatic costumes.

‘Many people consider the things that please my eye, ugly and disgusting,’ Mr Lordi explained. ‘For me, that is that that interests me, that that is beautiful.’

He compared Freddy Kreuger to the Mona Lisa, dubbing one ‘pretty’ with ‘depth’ and the other ‘boring’ — take a guess which is which.

The band enjoyed chart success after the release of Heavy Metal Hallelujah (Picture: Valtteri Hirvonen)

‘I started experimenting with my mom’s makeup kit when I was seven because I’ve always been drawn to monsters,’ he added. ‘I wanted to be a monster ever since I was a little kid.’

The intense prosthetic monster makeup was so integral to Lordi that the group hid their identities. To this day, they have never been filmed or photographed without it.

This became a particularly sore spot when after their Eurovision success the group was unmasked, with fans rallying around Lordi over the privacy violation.

While Lordi hasn’t been topping UK charts recently, they have just released a new album and bonus single called Made of Metal.

The song was written in collaboration with OnePlus and their all-metal phone launch, although Mr Lordi insists it’s a ‘full-on Lordi song’ regardless of inspiration.

He predicts a bright future for metal, as much like fashion, music trends move in cycles with a possible heavy rock and metal resurgence waiting to rise up once more.

‘Metal needs more younger listeners because if we think about the commercial radios everywhere around the world, they are basically focusing on young people,’ Mr Lordi shared.

‘I’m not a real prophet, even though I talk a lot, but it doesn’t mean that that makes any sense,’ joked the Eurovision icon.

Lordi has written a song inspired by an all-metal phone (Picture: Valtteri Hirvonen)

They have a brand new album out soon (Picture: Valtteri Hirvonen)

Despite seemingly missing that mainstream appeal, Lordi is booked and busy for the entire summer at huge metal festivals across Europe — which he notes fans of all ages attend.

‘The thing with metal is that the fans are loyal,’ he said. ‘If you like metal, it’s not just the flavour of the month — you will be a metal fan for life.

‘That is the secret of metal, it will hook you and keep its hook in you.’

As for those who kick up a fuss about metal music, Mr Lordi quipped: ‘If you don’t know what you’re talking about, then you can talk about anything.’

Made of Metal by Lordi, in collaboration with OnePlus, is available now to stream.

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